The near-14-year veteran has more than 50 fights to his credit, including a failed bid for the UFC’s heavyweight title back in 2006.

Nevertheless, Monson admits his bout with undefeated prospect Daniel Cormier (7-0 MMA, 4-0 SF) will be special, and he knows his future may hinge on a positive result.

“I’ve fought all over the world, but Strikeforce and the UFC are obviously the biggest promotions in the world,” Monson told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “You want to fight the best, and this is where it happens.

“It’s kind of weird coming back from a fight or something like that and get on the airplane and someone goes, ‘Oh, Jeff Monson. When are you going to fight again?’ I go, ‘Oh, I fought last night.’ If you’re not on TV, you’ve got to be a really hardcore fan to know. I’m excited to be here. This is a great opportunity for me. I just have to perform.”

Monson certainly has the abilities to deliver. The American Top Team-trained fighter counts a who’s who list of MMA among his past opponents that includes Josh Barnett, Kazuyuki Fujita, Forrest Griffin, Mark Kerr, Chuck Liddell, Roy Nelson, Pedro Rizzo, Ricco Rodriguez and Tim Sylvia, among others.

That said, Monson insisted he’s not looking past an opponent with less than two years experience as a professional fighter.

“I can’t outwrestle him,” Monson admitted. “I think my grappling speaks for itself, but wrestling, I’ll never be on the same level he is. He’s a two-time Olympian. I think I won the Pac-10 one time or something like that, and he’s a two-time Olympian. That’s not even the same league. But my grappling on the ground is pretty good. It depends on where the fight is.

“He works with [American Kickboxing Academy], and they have a pretty good camp. He’s got the best guys surrounding him right now, and he’s motivated. He’s doing this full-time. He went to the highest level of wrestling, so I don’t see why this would be any different. Great athlete, young guy. The sky is the limit.”

And while Monson’s assessment of his opponent is incredibly fair, “The Snowman” carries his own eight-fight win streak into the contest, and five of the wins came via submission.

Monson has recently suggested his future actually lies at 205 pounds, and at just 5-foot-9, the muscular grappler would seem a prime candidate to make the switch from his current heavyweight status.

But for now, he’s fighting with the big boys, and after prior stints in the UFC, DREAM, PRIDE, Sengoku, and many others, Monson knows what’s on the line Saturday night.

“I just walked in and saw (Alistair) Overeem, and I’m like, ‘I’m in the same weightclass as you?'” Monson joked. “Maybe 205 pounds is calling.

“I think I have to look good. I fight to win. That’s in my own head. I can’t make those decision, so I don’t know, but I have to look good, and I have to perform well. We’ll see what happens after that.”

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